Yes I am posting that I will be posting something soon.

My wife sent me this prayer in an email today:

Dear Lord, I thank You for this day,
I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning.
I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God.
You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me.
Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you.
I ask now for Your forgiveness.
Please keep me safe from all danger and harm.
Help me to start this Day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude.
Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You.
Please broaden my mind that I can accept all things.
Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over.
And give the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits.
I know that when I can't pray, You listen to my heart.
Continue to use me to do Your will.
Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others Keep me strong that I may help the weak...
Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others.
I pray for those that are lost and can't find their way.
I pray for those that are misjudged and misunderstood.
I pray for those who don't know You intimately.
I pray for those that will delete this without sharing it with others.
I pray for those that don't believe.
I thank you that I believe that God changes people and God changes things.
I pray for all my sisters and brothers.
I pray for each and every family member in their households.
I pray for peace, love, and joy in their homes.
I pray that they are out of debt and all their needs are met.
I pray that every eye that reads this knows there is no problem, circumstance, or situation greater than God.
Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight.
I pray that these words will be received into the hearts of every eye that sees it.
God, I love you and I need you.
Please Come into my heart,
Amen.

In this month we have a holiday (somewhat) that everyone looks forward to. It's a celebration of "love" we call it Valentine's Day.

Quote from Wikipedia article:

Valentine's Day or Saint Valentine's Day is a holiday celebrated on February 14 by many people throughout the world. In the West, it is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other by sending Valentine's cards, presenting flowers, or offering confectionery. The holiday is named after two among the numerous Early Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

An alternative theory from Belarus states that the holiday originates from the story of Saint Valentine, who upon rejection by his mistress was so heartbroken that he took a knife to his chest and sent her his still-beating heart as a token of his undying love for her. Hence, heart-shaped cards are now sent as a tribute to his overwhelming passion and suffering. ^[1]

The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of "valentines." Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline, doves, and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards.^[2] The sending of Valentines was a fashion in nineteenth-century Great Britain, and, in 1847, Esther Howland developed a successful business in her Worcester, Massachusetts home with hand-made Valentine cards based on British models. The popularity of Valentine cards in 19th-century America was a harbinger of the future commercialization of holidays in the United States.^[3]

The U.S. Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately one billion valentines are sent each year worldwide, making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas. The association estimates that women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines.^[4]

We have a new president this year and he seems to have a very healthy and loving marriage, as the photo below shows.

Hopefully this kind of example from our Nation's leader can bring the popularity of marriage back.

It's just a thought.

Good Morning all,
I have been away from this blog for a long time but I am back now and I hope to chronicle my journey for your spiritual inspiration and information. Now with that mea cope out of the way, let’s continue our journey.
I am leading one of the greatest churches in the world and I say that not because of our size or money but, simply because we are doing so much with so little. One thing we began last year that has greatly enhanced our ministry effectiveness is our monthly Leadership meeting. Leaders of all our ministries gather monthly at my home for planning, training, and fellowship. It is really great to hear the progress reports from our various ministries and if someone is having a challenge the other leaders are there to offer suggestions; that really helps and supports the other leaders.
Everyone gets on the same page in terms of planning so that we don’t have so many conflicting events on our schedule. I as well as the others look forward to the fellowship as we grow together as a ministry team. It is definitely something that will continue on into this year and throughout the growth of our church.

Treasures of Mine

One of the mothers of our church has published some of her wonderful writings in this new book described here. You can click here to purchase your copy.

 This is a collection of extraordinary spirit-filled poems that are full of wisdom and insight that can only come from living a rich, Christ-centered life.
In 2004 at the age of 71, Evelyn S. Benton dedicated her life to Christ and was baptized. It was then that the Holy Spirit began to give her inspirational poetry.
“Each day I realize more and more that nothing really matters in this world except love — the love we receive from others and the love we give in return.” ~Evelyn S. Benton
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A native of North Carolina, Evelyn S. Benton has been married to her husband, Albert, for 55 years. She is the mother of 7 children, who have produced 11 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. She enjoys gardening and writing poetry.
(2007, paperback, 48 pages)

Source: Treasures of Mine

What do you have in your house?

Have you ever been in a partnership situation in which your partner seemingly brought much more to the table than you did? In our consumer oriented society, we have been acclimated to being served more than serving. It’s seems like everywhere we go there is an expectation of getting a lot more than we are really paying for. I am currently being invited into a partnership which offers a tremendous amount of resources and I have felt challenged to really identify just what I bring to the table. Ironically, I was not focused on “what was in it for me” or “what can I get out of it” but, what resource I could be in this partnership. Maybe it’s because I getting more mature (not older), that I recognize how important it is for me to be a resource to my society. Someone who reads this may be asking these same questions of themselves: what can I do well? What real abilities do I have? What have I produced over the course of my life that can be a resource for someone else?

Dr. Myles Monroe in his teaching on purpose said “don’t seek success, but seek to be of value” because it is when we are of value that people will exchange their resources for what you have. He goes on to ask the question: When others think of you, what comes to mind? For example: when we think about Bill Gates, we thinks about Microsoft(a multibillion dollar corporation); when we think of Michael Jordan we think of Basketball, John Maxwell-Leadership, T.D Jakes-preaching, Mahatmas Gandhi- peaceful civil action, Martin Luther King Jr. we think about “the Civil Rights Movement”. What is that people think about when they think of you?

This caused an intense investigation into what I have to offer my world. I believe I have discovered some things today that I can do and do well. To determine my resources I first sought God about what he really gifted me to do. Then I meditated on what I have done with great success in the past and where my energy flowed most. I also consulted some trusted friends, who I knew loved me and would tell me the truth. By following that process I feel I have gained some insight into areas that I have genuine expertise and gifting. I feel much more confident that I really have something to bring to the table in any networking situation.

What we do at the Lighthouse

OUR MISSION
To be an agency of God for evangelizing the world (Matt.28: 19-20; Mar.16: 15-16). To be a corporate body where man can worship God (1Cor.12: 13; Eph.2: 17-22). To be channels of Gods purpose to build a body of saints being perfected in the image of His Son (Eph4: 11-16; 1Cor.14: 12).

OUR MISSION (In plain English)
To bring the unchurched to a genuine relationship with Christ, (Matt.28: 19-20; Mar.16: 15-16). To be a place where the love of God can be expressed in dynamic worship (1Cor.12: 13; Eph.2: 17-22). To develop believers in Christ like maturity and Spirit powered ministry to the church and the community. (Eph4: 11-16; 1Cor.14: 12).


OUR VISION
Our vision is to bring people to relationship with Jesus Christ and membership in His body, developing them to maturity and equipping them for spiritually gifted ministry. (Eph.5: 8-20; Phil.2: 15-16; Matt.28: 19-20; Eph.4: 16)


ENCOURAGE * EDIFY * EQUIP * (As We Worship)

To ENCOURAGE people in the communities around us toward relationship with Christ, EDIFY their lives toward Christ-likeness and EQUIP them to reproduce the life of God in others in their communities, through fellowship, teaching and worship.